Why do you need an ATV?

OK, so you really want a new ATV. Why? What are you going to do with it? Is it really necessary? How much do they cost?

My needs are pretty simple, expensive but simple.  I have a ride of about 4.5 miles of “Missouri unimproved road” to traverse between highway 36 and our duck hunting hide. So that does not sound like too big of a deal. 4 1/2 miles of gumbo.  Throw that truck in 4WD and let’s go! Or as I understand the saying goes in Texas, “here hold my beer.”

Now let me try to set the record straight. Missouri gumbo is a cross between high slump concrete and 5 minute epoxy. As the mud freezes and thaws it becomes stickier and more adherent. The rut deepens and balls up inside the wheel wells.  High ground clearance and momentum rule the day here and since there are no outlets or turn arounds, once you start in you keep going until you get to your hide.  Then you sweat all day about the rain and snow that is falling and how that will make the road even worse. In between these two events is 30 minutes of the most hair-raising driving this city boy has ever been a part of. As we say in the duck blind, “you are water tight the entire trip.”  If the rain really pours during the day you may have to drive through more than a foot of water getting back up the road to 36 highway. Sounds like fun doesn’t it?  Well it is except you worry about that $40K vehicle that you just washed and waxed and take such good care of.  You are constantly in danger of going off into the bar ditch and getting stuck, getting high centered, or flipping over. That is just getting in.  Getting out has the same dangers, plus you gotta clean that dirty bugger up when you get back to town.  For the record, most car washes want no truck (pun was unintended but after consideration left in place) with this kind of mud.  Their traps fill quickly with that mud and then they have a problem, so they prefer you stay away, which means you have to wash it at odd hours when management is not around. Several have a wanted poster on their wall with my truck’s picture on it.

What does this have to do with ATVs? Well, everything.

If you want to turn this entire hair-raising event into more fun than you can expect to have with your clothes on, then get an ATV and ride on down that road.  No worries about getting high centered, stuck, rolled over or any other problem.  You will likely get just as muddy as you would in the truck but you dress for it and hit the gas.  It makes the trip to and from the hide extra fun without the worry and the hassle. I have driven this road in a truck for almost 8 years and on an ATV for about the same time and I can tell you I have never felt close to getting stuck with the ATV and have been stuck several times in a 4WD truck. Plus in the truck I always have some fears of losing momentum and getting stuck while on the ATV I slow down sometimes just because I can!

So we now have some criteria for selecting an ATV, how do we go about making a selection?

Well, here come some experiential principles that may not fit anyone else’s needs but they surely do mine.

If you want to keep your rig out of the shop, my experience says stay with Yamaha or Honda. The others have their loyal followers and I can’t speak for them by my experience says with 4 1/2 miles of gumbo in front of you and questionable cell service from any supplier (subject for another blog) stay with one of the big 2. If you need to ride a Polaris, make sure one of your buddies is riding a Honda or Yamaha to get you back to highway 36. Second, experienced folks in the maintenance field explain that you want to stay with a geared transmission rather than a Honda CVT tranny (read Rubicon and Rincon), the big knobby tires and additional weight that we carry (Dog box, dog, shotgun, gear for a day in the hide (decoys etc.)) plus the extra mud does not sit well with continuously variable transmissions.

So for my needs I need only look at the Yamaha and Honda offerings.  Experience tells me that I need at least 450 cc’s.  It must have 4 wheel drive. Manual shifters are really out of the question with the kinds of footware we have on. Front locking differential and selective 4WD are very nice to haves.  If you are driving through 2+’ of water with 3-5 inches of ice on it, you need the ability to lock in the front end and have 4WD to bust that ice! There are several other ways to do this but the technique I just described is the easiest and quickest. With the front end locked and 4WD engaged you have one of those “hold my beer” moments that is really a lot of fun and not dangerous if you are careful, and know the depth of the water you running through.

Alright, so we need 450 – 700 cc’s of displacement, 4WD and front end diffy locker. A lot of this stuff is available after market if you are mechanically inclined and have the time.  Actually my last couple of rigs have had extensive additions (electric shifters, front end lockers, selectable 4WD, aftermarket shocks, blah, blah, blah) so I know of such things I just prefer to start out with those things installed and engineered by the manufacturer if possible. Again, I have done it the other way but it is risky and time consuming and frankly not nearly as reliable as OEM parts and engineering.

Any way, to make a fairly long story not quite as long, it came down to Honda Foreman and the Yamaha Grizzly. The cost differential is significant but there are some reasons for the cost.  I found a used DU Grizzly 2007 for about the same price as a new Foreman. The Griz has DU camo, electronic fuel injection and few more cc’s and more rack capacity.  Those are all things I can use to my advantage getting to and from the duck blind.  In addition,they are things I can afford and would like to have.

Now with all of that said, the Foreman is a beast of a machine.  It will get you up and down the road (in fact one of my buddies will ride along side of me on his Foreman and we will both make it in and out of the duck club without incident for years to come.)

I guess with any purchase several key issues must be resolved

• How much do you have to spend (figure $6K – $8K)
• What will you be doing with your machine (the road, breaking ice, deep water)
• Are there any special requirements for the usage (heavy towing, extra loads, more capacity)
• Does your experience tell you there are features you need or would really prefer (diffy locker)
• What are the value based (subjective) criteria for your selection (Honda or Yamaha)

In other words, if you gotta have a Polaris (read Arctic Cat, etc.) then please do not use this criteria. If you want to drive your given road in a truck please do so and enjoy.

I am just having too much fun on my ATV to stop and wonder how you do what you do and why. I strongly support your right to get to and from your hide any way you wish as long as you give me that same consideration.

What are the “nuggets of gold” you can take away from this entry?

• Hondas and Yamahas rule! (alright that was not fair)
• Mud and heavy loads are not CVT friendly
• Front diffy lockers and 4WD are pretty important selection criteria
• 500 cc’s is a minimum for dog and dog box, mud, my fat behind, and maybe a guest (please no comments on passengers)
• If you gotta drive a truck then drive a truck
• Missouri gumbo is organic epoxy
• 4 1/2 miles of Missouri unimproved road is a long way to walk
• Make the journey to the duck hide as fun as possible (is there a life metaphor here?)

So there you have it, a new ride and lots more fun than you would expect from what can be a pretty stressful situation. Ride an ATV and don’t worry about it.